Dispenser and Methods

ABSTRACT

A dosing bottle closure ( 24; 320 ) has a body ( 26; 326 ) and a lid ( 27; 327 ). The body ( 26 ) has: a sidewall ( 50 ) extending from a lower rim ( 54 ) to an upper rim ( 62 ); and means ( 58 ) along the sidewall ( 50 ) for engaging a container body ( 22 ). The lid ( 27 ) is hinged relative to the body for articulation between a closed condition and an open condition. The body defines an internal upwardly open chamber ( 25 ) at least partially covered by the lid in the closed condition. The body defines a feed passageway ( 100 ) having an outlet ( 110 ) to the chamber ( 25 ) and spaced above a bottom ( 72 ) of the chamber.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

Benefit is claimed of U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. 61/844,167, filed Jul. 9, 2013, and entitled “Dispenser and Methods”, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety as if set forth at length.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to dispensing of home and garden granules/powders and liquids (flowable materials) such as detergents, fabric softeners, insecticides, fertilizers and the like. More particularly, the invention relates to dosing bottles.

Exemplary flowable materials are laundry detergent, fabric softener, and home and garden chemicals (e.g., fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides).

Conventionally in such fields, dosing may be achieved via providing a combined cap and measuring cup. Exemplary such caps/cups have installed conditions screwed onto a spout fitment to close/seal a bottle.

One recently-proposed dispenser is found in International Patent Application No. PCT/US12/20471, “Dispenser and Methods”, filed Jan. 6, 2012, of inventors: Alex S. Szekely and Richard H. Seager.

In other fields, a number of dosing bottles have been proposed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One aspect of the invention involves a dosing bottle closure that has a body and a lid. The body has: a sidewall extending from a lower rim to an upper rim; and means along the sidewall for engaging a container body. The lid is hinged relative to the body for articulation between a closed condition and an open condition. The body defines an internal upwardly open chamber at least partially covered by the lid in the closed condition. The body defines a feed passageway having an outlet to the chamber and spaced above a bottom of the chamber.

The details of one or more embodiments of the invention are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, objects, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a view of a container having a first closure.

FIG. 2 is a central transverse vertical sectional view of the container of FIG. 1 taken along line 2-2.

FIG. 3 is a central vertical longitudinal sectional view of the container of FIG. 1 taken along 3-3.

FIG. 4 is a view of the first closure in an open condition containing a charge of material.

FIG. 5 is a top view of the closure of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a central vertical longitudinal sectional view of the closure of FIG. 5, taken along line 6-6.

FIG. 7 is a central vertical transverse sectional view of the closure of FIG. 5 taken along line 7-7.

FIG. 8 is a central vertical longitudinal sectional view of a second closure in a closed condition.

FIG. 9 is a central vertical longitudinal cutaway view of the second closure in an open condition.

FIG. 10 is a central vertical longitudinal sectional view of the second closure in a charging condition.

FIG. 11 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of the second closure in a drainback condition.

FIG. 12 is a central vertical longitudinal sectional view of the second closure upon opening after the drainback.

FIG. 13 is a central vertical longitudinal sectional view of the second closure during pouring/discharge.

Like reference numbers and designations in the various drawings indicate like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Two embodiments of a closure are disclosed which may otherwise operate in a similar fashion and may otherwise be manufactured similarly. Exemplary closures may be used in identical fashion. The first closure is a one-piece closure; whereas the second closure is a two-piece closure. Additionally, as is discussed further below, passageway inlet features of the two closures may differ.

An exemplary container 20 comprises a bottle body or container body 22 and a closure 24. The exemplary bottle body has an interior 23 (FIG. 2) forming a reservoir containing a body 400 of flowable material. The closure defines a dosing chamber 25 which may, in various stages of operation, receive, hold and dispense a dose or charge 402 of the flowable material.

The closure comprises a body 26 and a lid, cap, or cover 27. Exemplary bottle body, closure body, and closure lid materials are molded plastics such as various polyethylenes and polypropylenes.

The FIG. 1-7 embodiment closure lid and body are unitarily molded as a single piece with a living hinge 150 (FIG. 3) such as a conventional butterfly hinge (or a hinge such as in PCT/US11/53858 (the disclosure if which is incorporated by reference in its entirety as if set forth at length), filed Sep. 29, 2011, “Living Hinge” of inventor H Stephen Quinn). The FIG. 8 embodiment closure 320, lid 327, and body 326 are shown as separate pieces forming respective halves of a hinge 330.

An exemplary bottle body (injection blow molded) 22 (FIG. 2) has a neck 28 extending upward from a shoulder 29 about a central longitudinal/vertical axis 500 to a rim 30 defining an open mouth 32. The neck has an external thread 34 (or other feature) for mounting the closure body. The exemplary thread 34 is a double lead thread. An exemplary closure body (injection molded) 26 screws onto the bottle neck/mouth and may lock with a lug or detent (not shown) thereon to prevent counter-rotation and extraction.

The exemplary closure body 26 comprises an outer wall 50 (sidewall) (FIG. 3). A lower portion 52 of the wall 50 extends upward from an upper rim 54 and has an interior (inner diameter (ID)) surface 56 bearing an internal thread 58 for engaging the bottle body thread 34. An upper portion 60 of the wall 50 extends upward to a rim 62. A transverse web 70 (FIG. 6) has a perimeter at a junction of the wall portions 52 and 60. An upper surface 72 (or a portion thereof) of the web 70 forms an underside of the chamber 25 containing the dose 402 of material. Laterally, the chamber 25 is partially bounded by the upper wall portion 60 and partially bounded by a transverse wall 80. In the exemplary embodiment, a central portion of the wall 80 extends upward from the web 70 to an upper edge 90 to separate the chamber 25 from a feed passageway 100. Edge 90 is recessed below the rim 62 to create a gap 110 (FIG. 4). The gap 110 forms an outlet of the feed passageway 100 during charging. In the exemplary embodiment, a partial flowback is permitted through the gap 110 over the edge 90 (which serves as a weir) to determine the height of the upper surface 410 (FIG. 6) of the dose/charge 402 when the container is uprighted after charging.

An inlet 120 (FIG. 6) to the feed passageway 100 may be formed at a lower end of the feed passageway 100.

Exemplary dose volume is one fluid ounce (30 ml), more broadly 5-75 ml or 15-50 ml. Exemplary bottle interior volume is about 32 fluid ounces (one liter, more broadly, 0.4-4.0 liter or 0.4-2.0 liter) (e.g. sufficient to contain that much flowable material). FIG. 3 also shows an exemplary bottle as having a sidewall extending upward to the shoulder from a base or bottom (which may support the bottle in a standing condition).

For providing a seal of the closure body to the bottle body, the closure body and bottle body may have complementary sealing surfaces which engage each other in the installed condition. A first sealing surface of the bottle body is formed by the rim 30. Its complementary first sealing surface of the closure body member is formed by a peripheral annular portion of the underside 130 (FIG. 6) of the web 70.

FIG. 6 furthers shows the lid 27 connected to the closure body by a living hinge 150. The exemplary lid and body have interfitting sealing and locking features. For sealing, an uppermost portion 160 of the sidewall upper portion 60 is received within a sidewall portion 170 of the lid in the closed condition. Exemplary detented locking in the closed condition may be provided by interfitting features (e.g., projections 180 and 182 of the lid and body).

FIG. 6 also shows a partial annular dead chamber 200 alongside of and behind the feed passageway 100 and separated therefrom by an arcuate wall 202. The dead chamber 200 may be separated from a head space above the dosing chamber 25 by lateral portions 220 (FIG. 4) of the wall 80 above the central portion 90 of the upper edge (above a central portion 224 (FIG. 5) of the wall 80). The upper edge 203 of the wall 202 and the upper edges 221 of lateral portions 220 extend upward to meet with the underside 225 of the lid in the closed condition to seal off the dead chamber in the closed condition. The lower extreme of the dead chamber is bounded by an annular segment of an upper surface 72 of the web 70.

In an exemplary charge/discharge sequence illustrated with the hinged embodiment, the lid is initially closed and the bottle upright (e.g., the FIG. 8 empty closure condition). The bottle is then fully or partially inverted (e.g., a full inversion to the FIG. 10 condition). Material flows from the bottle interior downward through the inlet 120 into the passageway 100 and out the outlet 110 into dosing chamber 25. The bottle is then uprighted (e.g., to the FIG. 11 condition) and any excess material in the closure will return (return flow shown in FIG. 11) through the outlet 110 over the weir 90 and back into the bottle interior leaving a desired volume for the charge 402 in chamber 25 (e.g., the first embodiment FIG. 3 condition). Thereafter, the lid may be opened (FIG. 12) and the bottle tilted to pour (FIG. 13). To facilitate pouring, the sidewall upper portion 60 at the front is angled outward to form a partial spout, thereby, reducing the angle by which the bottle the must be tilted to pour from the chamber 25. This facilitates the prevention of any further material passing through the feed passageway during pouring. The second embodiment contains a baffle 350 along the forward portion of the feed passageway below the web 70 to shift the feed passageway inlet 360 to the rear of the closure, and, thereby, relatively high during pouring to prevent material from entering the inlet.

After pouring, the bottle is re-uprighted and the lid closed (in any order). Thereafter, the process may be repeated by inverting to charge.

One or more embodiments of the present invention have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, the nature of the particular product to be dispensed may influence details of any particular embodiment. The bottle body may be based on the overall configuration of an existing or yet-developed conventional bottle for such product. Tamper-evident features may also be included. Accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims. 

1. A dosing bottle closure comprising: a body comprising: a sidewall extending from a lower rim to an upper rim; means along the sidewall for engaging a container body; and a lid hinged relative to the body for articulation between a closed condition and an open condition, wherein: the body defines an internal upwardly open chamber at least partially covered by the lid in the closed condition; the body defines a feed passageway having an inlet and an outlet to the chamber spaced above a bottom of the chamber, a hinge defines a rear end of the body; and the inlet faces at least partially rearward.
 2. The closure of claim 1 wherein the body and lid are unitarily molded as a single piece.
 3. The closure of claim 1 wherein: a hinge defines a rear end of the body; and an open top second chamber is between the feed passageway and the hinge.
 4. The closure of claim 3 wherein: the lid closes the second chamber in the closed condition
 5. The closure of claim 3 wherein: lateral portions of a wall separate the chamber from the second chamber; a central portion of the wall having a vertically recessed upper edge separates the chamber from the feed passageway.
 6. The closure of claim 1 wherein: the inlet of the feed passageway is spaced below the bottom of the chamber.
 7. (canceled)
 8. The closure of claim 1 wherein: the chamber has a volume of 15-75 ml.
 9. A container comprising: a container body having an interior for storing a flowable material; the closure of claim 1 secured to the container body.
 10. The container of claim 9 wherein: the container body is polyethylene; and the closure body and lid are polypropylene.
 11. The container of claim 9 further comprising: a flowable material within the container body.
 12. The container of claim 11 further comprising: the flowable material is a particulate.
 13. The container of claim 11 further comprising: the flowable material is a detergent.
 14. The container of claim 9 wherein: the container body interior has a volume of 0.4-2.01.
 15. A method for using the container of claim 9 comprising: tilting the container with the lid in the closed condition to transfer a first dose of material from the interior through the feed passageway; uprighting the container to leave some of the material in the chamber; opening the lid to the open condition; and tilting the container to pour at least a portion of the charge from the container.
 16. The method of claim 15 further comprising: after the pouring, reuprighting the container and closing the lid; and repeating the tilting, uprighting, opening, and tilting.
 17. A dosing bottle closure comprising: a body comprising: a sidewall extending from a lower rim to an upper rim; means along the sidewall for engaging a container body; and a lid hinged relative to the body for articulation between a closed condition and an open condition, wherein: the body defines an internal upwardly open chamber at least partially covered by the lid in the closed condition; the body defines a feed passageway having an inlet and an outlet to the chamber spaced above a bottom of the chamber; a hinge defines a rear end of the body; and the inlet is rearwardly offset from a rear wall of the chamber.
 18. A dosing bottle closure comprising: a body comprising: a sidewall extending from a lower rim to an upper rim; means along the sidewall for engaging a container body; and a lid hinged relative to the body for articulation between a closed condition and an open condition, wherein: the body defines an internal upwardly open chamber at least partially covered by the lid in the closed condition; and the body defines a feed passageway having: an inlet spaced below a bottom of the chamber; and an outlet to the chamber spaced above the bottom of the chamber. 